(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to improvements in or relating to target apparatus for use on a firing range.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
International standards for pistol target shooting require five (5) targets to be mounted on a frame and all are operated together to face the shooter for a predetermined period and then rotate through 90.degree. to be side-on to the shooter. The standards require that the targets be rotated within 0.3 seconds and that no vibration be discernible at 25 meters. Various targets have been proposed to comply with these standards and an example is disclosed in Australian Pat. No. 441,741 (Australasian Training Aids Pty. Ltd.). This patent discloses a target apparatus where each target is provided with a pair of cranks, above and below the targets, the cranks being connected to operating rods driven by double-acting hydraulic or pneumatic rams, the vibration being controlled by pairs of buffers or dampers at the top and bottom of each target, the targets being held against the buffers in the face-on and side-on positions.
This apparatus has a number of disadvantages. As the targets rotate, the operating rods are moved laterally, as well as longitudinally, so that the force applied by the rams is no longer directly along the axis of the operating rods. Secondly, the targets do vibrate when they strike the buffers and the shock loads generate vibration in the frame, requiring a heavy frame to withstand the load.